


Of Tea, Ghosts, and One Word Prompts

by neffie_graham



Category: Ghost Hunt
Genre: Alternate Universe - Never Met, Angst, F/M, Friendship, One Shot Collection, One Word Prompts, Parapsychology, Psychokinesis, Romance, Supernatural Elements
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-07-29
Updated: 2017-01-23
Packaged: 2018-04-11 22:18:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 17
Words: 13,862
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4454498
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neffie_graham/pseuds/neffie_graham
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Theirs is a common love story- A bright young girl, a cold young man. But it gets complex when you add in the paranormal factor. Oneshots based off of one-word prompts, merging the simplicity and the supernatural of the Ghost Hunt we love so much. Discontinued.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Sunrise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mai knew that the entire sequence of events most likely only occurred because of his drowsiness, but the young psychic could not help but dream.

The twisting of the mountain road and the van's muffled engine slowly eased Mai out of her peaceful state of sleep. The sky was still dark, the trees making a barely discernible silhouette against the deep horizon. The young brunette yawned as she fully began to comprehend the situation. They had been called to a case in the far north of Japan, but due to scheduling conflicts, they were not able to depart until around 11 PM. Mai was still too drowsy to recall the details of this particular case, but knew that Naru would surely scold her if she were to ask. Speaking of Naru, Mai poked her head forward into the gap between the two front seats in order to see the young man in the passenger seat.

Surprisingly, he seemed to be sleeping, yet still emanating an aura of awareness. His breathing was slow and steady, and his body was shifted down in his seat slightly, allowing his head to lay against the back of the seat. Mai smiled- though in daytime her boss was cold, condescending and rude, even he was susceptible to the look of innocence and warmth that one takes upon themselves as they sleep.

She turned her head slightly to the right, acknowledging the shadowed, ever silent form of Lin, driving the van towards their destination. His eyes briefly abandoned the road to meet her glance, returning to their original position as quickly as they left. Mai did not expect anything more, after all, they were driving on a twisted mountain road at 4 AM.

Naru shifted in his seat, sliding back up into a normal sitting position. Mai turned back towards his side, making eye contact with the raven haired psychic. The weariness of the early morning seemed to be present in his features, and Mai felt a wave of sympathy for her boss. He had confided in her a few cases ago about his chronic insomnia, and she knew he probably hadn't slept for very long. Before she realized what was going on, Naru had signaled to his silent guardian to pull over onto the side of the road. He exited the van, surprising the young girl, and then reentered so he could sit next to Mai. After he buckled in once more, he again made eye contact with Mai. Her face heated quickly, the cold blue gaze piercing her thoughts until all she could think of was him.

All too soon, his stare broke away, leaving her body feeling empty. That chill swept throughout her body, only to be abruptly stopped by a new sensation- that of a soft hand taking hold of hers. Her chest constricted, her breaths became shallow, and the only thing she could feel was his hand. For two hours, Mai sat perfectly still, feeling his larger hand delicately caress hers. And those two hours felt like eternity, for which she would gladly be immortal. As she once more looked at her beloved narcissist, she realized he had once more fallen asleep. Mai knew that the entire sequence of events most likely only occurred because of his drowsiness, but the young psychic could not help but dream.

The sky was lighter now, with tints of pink shading the edges of the clouds. The rising yellow sun illuminated Naru's delicate features, causing his hair to glow in the light. His skin was a palette of reds, oranges, and pinks. Mai imagined the sunrise painting his face, and then growing jealous of its masterpiece because he was more beautiful than his creator.

Mai smiled.


	2. Key

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "There you go again, Naru. Always stealing the good moments for yourself!"

She thought it was her lucky key. It had always comforted her in times of doubt, but now, as a possessed Masako was tearing at Mai's face with the same key, she wasn't so sure. Mai had only lent it to Masako, as she was feeling uneasy, and it helped console her in the Urado case. And to see it now being used against her made her blood chill. The medium managed to land a hit on her right cheek, causing Mai to hiss in pain. Mai turned, and attempted to outrun the medium, but the smaller girl moved at an incredible speed. Mai turned a corner in the carpeted hall, skidding and sliding and stumbling and trying, trying, trying to save herself while screaming out for Bou-san, John, Naru, anybody to come. 

“Mai!”

A piercing whistle rung through the air. Several small beings of light flew around the possessed Masako, not letting her get to her prey. Mai looked up to see the intimidating Onmyouji bent over, gasping for breath. His shiki swarmed Masako, preventing the shrieking spirit from getting closer to Mai. Behind him was Naru, with a panic stricken look on his face, reaching out to take Mai’s hand.  
She gladly accepted the offered hand, and stood up shakingly, letting herself fall into Naru’s comforting arms. He protectively wrapped them around her, and guided them away from the still screaming Masako. As they walked back to the base, they passed Takigawa, who was running to the location they had just left. John wasn’t far behind, clutching his small bottle of holy water. Both gave Mai a once-over, seeing the scratches along her arms and a deep cut marring her right cheek, before moving even more quickly towards Masako. Little drops of blood slid from her face to the ground, and Naru supported her as she threatened to collapse in his grip. 

As they finally stepped foot into the base room, Ayako was ready with her first aid kit. She pried Mai away from a reluctant Naru, and guided her to the couch, where she immediately began disinfecting the numerous cuts. The T.V. displaying what was going on in the hallway. A staticy “Screw you, bitch!” came from Masako’s fighting form on the monitor. Mai’s eyes widened, and started shaking so much that Ayako had to hold her down.

Naru paced the room, glancing worriedly at his brunette assistant nearly every five seconds. He was so furious with himself for allowing her to look for Masako by herself, especially after what had nearly occurred during the Urado case. He should have known better, he should have gone with her, he should have, should have, should have. He whipped around to face the monitor as the noise level increased greatly, then all too quickly cut off. The only sound in the base was that of Mai’s whimpers. He saw Masako collapse through the screen, only to be caught by John. The three male figures in the hall conversed quietly for a moment, too quietly for the microphone to pick up. The brown haired monk picked up Masako’s fragile figure and, followed by John and Lin, headed towards the base.  
Naru turned back to Mai, who appeared to have calmed down slightly. He walked over to her, and gently sat next to her on the couch. Being careful not to disturb the bandage that Ayako had set onto the wound on her cheek, he guided her head to face him. Looking deep into her tired, watery eyes, he said only one thing.

“I’m sorry.”

Mai jerked away from his touch, startled by his sudden apology. But then she smiled, and settled back into the couch, sighing. “There you go again, Naru. Always stealing the good moments for yourself!”  
Naru laughed quietly, just as the three men returned to the base with Masako just starting to awaken. Lin walked silently over to the pair on the couch, and pressed something into Naru’s hand, whispering something in his ear. The young man nodded in understanding, then turned back towards Mai. “I believe this belongs to you. You shouldn’t lose your keys, dummy,” he said teasingly as he dangled her lucky key in front of her face. He held it just out of her reach, and as she half-jumped to grab it from him, she lost her balance and landed on top of her boss, causing him to topple onto his back, laying on the couch.  
She got a perfect view of his slightly shocked expression, and the sight of it made her giggle innocently. And then not-so-innocently as she realized her position. But before she could move away and apologize deeply, Naru raised his head to lightly touch his lips to hers.

Maybe my key is lucky after all, is all the brunette could think in that moment.


	3. Kawaii

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> But the worst part was, even though Mai thought Naru would enjoy her torment, he wasn't paying an ounce of attention to her!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Edited to include more dialogue. Don't judge. The prompt was given to me.

Mai wasn't quite positive as to why her boyfriend took this case, but yet, there they were.

In a maid café. 

"Ugh, this is ridiculous. I don't have time to be pandering to high school girls!" Ayako had been grumbling the entire time.

"Hey, it's not so bad, Matsuzaki-san! They're pretty cute- not as cute as you of course, my dear Bou-san- but I like it!"

"Yasu, I told you to stop messing around with me like that. Go tell them one of your outlandish tales while we get actual work done, will you?"

"Speaking of work, where's Hara-san?" A quiet Kansai accent pointed out amidst the bustle of the taller trio.

"The little brat said what I just did- except because she's rich and famous, she decided to just skip out! I really don't want to be here. There are no attractive men! At least you get all these girls fawning over you. You may be a Catholic priest, but you can't deny that you enjoy the attention."

"I- uh, well that is... umm..."

"That's enough, guys. Naru's getting pissy because you won't shut up!" All eyes turned to the short brunette. 

Silence.

"... I can't do it! Jou-chan, have you seen yourself? You look adorable!" The tall monk finally broke out into laughter.

And the worst part was, because ghosts tend to lay low for the first day of investigations, Naru had forced her to pretend to be one of the maids, to make the ghost come out faster. If there even was a ghost to begin with. Mai was highly doubtful, and she could tell her boyfriend was, too. But a case was a case, and this case happened to be paying well, even if it also came with extreme embarrassment on Mai's part.  
She tugged on her skirt, willing it to be just a few centimeters longer. She wanted to tear the cat-ear headband off of her head, and absolutely refused to acknowledge Yasu's teasing remarks. But the worst part was, even though Mai thought Naru would enjoy her torment, he wasn't paying an ounce of attention to her! He was too busy getting fawned over by the giggling maids. Mai huffed, and started to record the temperatures.

Just as she suspected, perfectly normal. 

One of the maids, she noticed, was not socializing with their group, instead, tending carefully to an older customer in the corner of the café. He was the only other person in there, and the maid seemed to just be listening to him. Her head hung low, seemingly in shame. 

Mai furrowed her eyebrows, and called over the employee who had hired them. "Excuse me, Nakano-san, would you mind telling me the name of that young girl over there?" She pointed over to the sulking maid.

"Ah, of course, Taniyama-sama! Also, please address me as Emiko-chan, if you don't mind! That over there is Kameko Kawano. She's always very quiet, and is the only one that man, Junichi Oowada-san, ever requests. I think he is her uncle, but I'm not positive. He comes here almost every day to see her." The young girl's smile became weaker as the mentioned the name of the patron. 

Mai quickly noticed this, and after thanking Emiko-chan, briskly made her way over to Naru, pushing aside giggling girls. "Naru! There's somebody who I think you should investigate."

The black haired boy quickly ran his eyes over his girlfriend's attire, suppressing a smirk. "Let me guess- Junichi Oowada? Don't worry, Mai. I could tell as soon as I saw him. Lin is actually taking care of it right now."

And sure enough, when Mai turned back to the man, Lin was there, talking harshly to the man while Takigawa comforted a shaking Kameko. Mai could guess what was going on just from seeing Kameko tensing up when Takigawa placed his hands on her shoulders. The poor girl, having to go through something like that all alone.

Later, back in the SPR office, Mai interrogated her boss and boyfriend. "How did you know that it was Kameko poltergeisting without even talking to her?" She placed her hands face down on his desk, and leaned in inquisitively.

Naru sighed. "Simple. I'd met Oowada-san before. I knew he was a lecherous old man, and he was most likely using Kawano-san to fulfill his desires. Actually, if I'd known he was going to be the cause for all of this, I never would have forced you to wear that costume while we were there. I would have saved it for a more... special occasion." He smirked, and went back to reading his book.

Mai had so many questions, still. "Wait- how did you meet Oowada-san before? Why did you even take this case on the first place if you didn't know he was going to be there? Why did you... hold up."

Naru's eyes gleamed. It seems her brain finally processed his last remark. He used a small amount of PK to shut and lock his office door, and set his book down. He stared at Mai deviously, willing her to put the pieces together.

"Oh. So that's why you happened to have a maid costume for me to wear." Mai's face was as red as... well, as red as a face can get. Sure, they had done... stuff- they've been dating for over a year now. But Naru had never expressed a kink for cosplay.

Lin attempted to get into Naru's office. He wiggled the doorknob, but it was locked. Suddenly, he heard the rustling of clothes coming from the other side of the door. Eyes widening in sudden understanding, he warned the irregulars crowded in the lobby that they might want to leave. Just before he grabbed his jacket to head out himself, he scribbled a quick note that he stuck to the door of Naru's office.  
'Noll- You're welcome.'


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> And the worst part was, Mai forgave him.

It stung.

His scathing words, laced with venom and intending to maim- no, to kill- cut into her skin, her bones, the very essence of her being. All she had done was fall asleep- and despite him constantly telling her that he doesn't pay her to sleep, dreaming was the only way she could be useful. And sure, he might be angrier than usual due to Gene being in her dream- he was supposed to have moved on, after all- but that doesn't mean he gets to say those kinds of things to her.

Mai fumed, angry at her boss, and sniffed quietly, not wanting to give up her hiding spot in the bathroom. But it didn't really matter- nobody would be looking for her. Nobody really cared, especially not Naru. After all, he was the one who lashed at her, reopening old wounds and creating new ones, saying she was worthless, he was a fool to hire her, and that she would never be taken on a case again as soon as this one was over.

Oh yes, it stung.

And the worst part was, Mai forgave him.

Yes, she forgave him for hurting her, knowing he was hurting as well. She knew he said things he shouldn't have, knew he had gone too far this time, but she still found it within her 18 year old mind to forgive him. Hopefully, he would forgive her as well. She should have been doing her job correctly, should have been recording the temperatures with Yasuhara. It was her fault for being too weak to resist the call to leave her body to go to the astral plane. 

Suddenly, Mai understood. The problem was not that Mai had fallen asleep in the hallway- all that would grant her was a derisive glance and a sigh. No, she had not just fallen asleep- she had been astral projecting. She left her body completely defenseless, and hadn't called out to Yasuhara. That was why Naru was angry. This was a particularly dangerous case, they had already experienced enough to know that. And despite this, Mai still was too weak to let somebody know that she was being pulled towards the astral plane, like Naru had instructed her to do. Mai stood, wiping away stray tears pooling at the corner of her eyes. Shaking, she left the bathroom, and walked toward the base, where Naru was sure to be. Opening the door, she poked her head inside, glancing around. 

She jumped slightly, gasping breathlessly- Naru was almost right in front of the door, staring at it patiently, but with a trace of... some unknown emotion (that might be construed as worry) in his eyes. Had he been waiting for her? She noticed that he was standing from the chair that he had pulled over to the door, and was preparing to say something. Remembering the case at Yasu's school, she was determined to get the first word in this time.

"I'm sorry, Naru! Please forgive me!" Her head bowed in subordination and shame, she didn't see the shocked expression on Naru's face. 

Why was she apologizing to him? Naru was wordless for the sorry sight in front of him. His hand moved of its own accord, reaching out to caress her soft hair. Catching himself just in the nick of time, he snapped his hand back. But the urge to touch her was still there, so he did something he never would normally do.

He hugged her, wrapping his arms around her stiff torso, cradling her to his chest. 

"There's no need to apologize to me, Mai. I'm not angry, you du... I'm not angry." He had nearly used his teasing nickname for her, but quickly thought better of it when he realized she might still be sensitive to his insults. Naru sighed. "In fact, I think I should be the one who is sorry. I lashed out unfairly when you mentioned that you dreamed of Gene. Just... please don't scare me like that again."  
Mai tensed as he grabbed her, ready for him to yell at her once more, but when that turned into an embrace, she was just shocked. She quickly hid her face from his by burying it in his shirt, but that just made her more embarrassed. Soon realizing she could find no relief from her condition, she relaxed in his arms.

Listening to him speak, she realized that he truly was scared, never angry. He just doesn't have very good communication skills. Understanding the situation more clearly, she looked up into his cobalt eyes, which were staring into hers, pleading. She said only two words.  
"I promise."


	5. Respect

"Respect:  
-verb  
To hold in esteem or honor; to show regard or consideration for: I'm a human, so you should respect me, you damn narcissist!"

Those were the only words typed onto a word document opened on Mai's laptop. Another long day at the office was ahead of her, and she just had to start it off by ticking off Naru and being forced to write a 5,000 word essay on why he should respect her. If he deemed it satisfactory, he would give her a raise. A small one, but a raise nonetheless. And if he declared it a pile of trash so bad that even a second grader could write a better essay... well, he left that up to her imagination.

Mai sighed, having gotten nothing done in the past hour. The screen's whiteness seemed to be mocking her, saying, "Is this all you can do?" Almost as if to spite her, Naru's familiar command for tea sailed through his closed office door. Rising sluggishly, she reluctantly prepared his usual Earl Grey, and carried it to her boss.

For once, he wasn't reading one of his science books or writing lord-knows-what in that damn notebook of his. Instead, he was staring patiently at the wall in front of him, only acknowledging her entrance with a small glance in Mai's direction. 

Setting down the tea tray none too gently on his polished desk, she attempted to grab his attention by glaring at him. Her efforts were futile, however, as he only stared at the wall. It almost seemed as if he were doing this on purpose- trying to rile her up, just so that he can push her back down later. Wait a second- now that she thought about it, Naru seemed to be putting in extra effort into not noticing her. His lips were set into a thin, straight line, his eyebrows were furrowed, and his back seemed oddly stiff. 

Mai sighed, and gave up on her conquest. Huffing and pouting, she stalked out of his office, not noticing his eyes following her out, not seeing the small smirk planted on his features. Just before she could slam his door shut, he called out to her. "How's that essay coming along, Mai?" This only served to anger her even more, as she screamed in frustration, nearly wanting to tear her hair out and slap that pretty little smirk off of his face. She slammed the door, and her ranting could be heard crystal clearly, even though she was all the way to the other side of building by this point. He quietly laughed to himself, marveling at how easy it was to procure a response from his assistant. He wasn't sure why he was so desperate for her special attention, even if that attention was leaning towards the 'intense dislike' end of the spectrum. At least it was something.

Meanwhile, after informing Lin that she was, in fact, quite alright and perfectly sane, Mai collapsed breathlessly on her chair in front of the computer. Slender fingers poised just above the keys, she struggled to come up with anything- even one sentence might be able to get her creativity flowing. Quickly glancing at the clock, she realized that she only had about 45 more minutes to work on her little project before a client was supposed to arrive with a case, and after that, the essay was due for inspection. Annoyed yet excited, Mai sighed, closing her eyes and leaning her head on the back of the chair. 

"I didn't realize you were one to give up so quickly, Boss," a cheery and teasing voice exclaimed next to her ear. When Mai shot up in surprise, she was relieved to see her own self-proclaimed assistant, Yasuhara, standing with his back straight, hands behind his back and a stupid, yet endearing, grin on his face. "What's Big Boss making you do this time?"

Exasperatedly, Mai told him the tale of her current predicament. During her dramatic interpretation of that morning's argument, both Bou-san and Ayako had come into the office and were paying attention to her story. And when she finally told them about the essay, the monk clapped his hands excitedly, signalling that he had come up with an idea.

"Why don't we just help you write it? He never forbade you from getting help, so it should be fine, right?" The older man's enthusiasm diffused throughout the room until everybody, including Lin, who had been unwittingly roped into the ordeal, was crowded around Mai's laptop. 

"Now, let's get to work!"

\---

The next thirty minutes passed by in a breeze, with multiple "Hm"s and "No, that sounds dumb"s, which were usually followed by "Who's the one with the doctorate, old man?!"s. Everybody was taking turns at the computer, sometimes shoving each other out of the way, peering over shoulders, and all in all having a wonderful time. By the time only ten minutes were left, everyone had decided that Lin was going to be the only one typing, as he had the most words per minute, while everyone just called out ideas for him to turn into comprehensible sentences on the word document. Lin, of course, still wasn't sure why he was doing this, but he was too overwhelmed to leave the situation.

As he typed the final sentence, the client arrived. The door to the building opened with a bell, and an old man stepped inside, his cane waving in front of him, with a seeing-eye dog guiding him to the cushioned seat. Mai quickly shoved everybody away from the computer, hit print, and hurried over to the elderly man's side, simultaneously calling for Naru.   
When he stepped out of his office, he glanced over to the printer, and his eyes widened when he saw the printed essay in the tray. He dismissed it for the moment, and began interroga- interviewing- the man.

\---

After begrudgingly accepting the case at Mai's insistent pestering, he sent Yasu to make sure the client got safely back to his car. He sent the irregulars away as well, finding their smug grins to be particularly annoying that day. This left only he and Mai in the lobby, as Lin had already taken his laptop back to his own secluded haven. Raising a single eyebrow in Mai's direction, he asked, "Are you going to show me the essay?"

Mai jumped, stuttering, "Y-yes! Just a second!" She hurried over to the printer, evened out the pages, and shoved them into Naru's hands. She fidgeted where she stood as he skimmed over each page, mentally fretting and panicking about each little expression that flittered across his face. After what seemed like forever, and long since Yasu returned, her boss looked her in the eyes with an indiscernible expression. 

"I wasn't aware that Yasuhara-san being an," he glanced back to the paper, quoting one of the sentences, "'immortal, omniscient, omnipotent god figure who enjoys eating bananas seductively while maintaining eye contact with complete strangers' was a reason for me to respect you." Yasu let out a boisterous laugh, causing Mai to glare at him until he shut up.

Turning back to the smug figure in front of her, she wrung her hands, struggling to come up with an acceptable answer. "Uh.. it.. w-well, you should respect me for typing that sentence without barfing!" The room was silent. Even the birds constantly chirping outside seemed to be in awe of the stupidity of that sentence she just had the lack of brains to utter.

Naru sighed, shaking his head incredulously. He flicked her forehead gently, muttering, "Dummy." He then went back into his office, leaving Mai to wallow in her fear of her impending punishment.

That week's paycheck was doubled. On the envelope, a single sentence was written in Naru's familiar scrawl.   
'I respect you for being able to live with yourself after that showcase of the depth of your stupidity.'


	6. Frozen

Once, Bou-san asked Mai what her animal instincts felt like. Did she just seem to know, or was there a feeling that she associated with bad or good?

She struggled for a few moments to come up with a way to explain it. But as the monk was getting ice for a glass of water, she lit up with an idea. "It's like having somebody continually pouring ice down your clothes. It comes as a shock, and you can feel the cold spreading throughout your body. You get used to it, although it still feels uncomfortable. But then, they push you into the snow. You're freezing, and your mind is screaming get up, get up, get up, but you can barely move due to the cold. You feel like you're going to turn into a huge block of ice if you don't get over to a fire." The latent psychic looked up at the taller monk to see if he understood.

He looked pensive for a few moments, contemplating her answer. "I see. But what constitutes the fire?" Paying close attention to his jou-chan's expressions, he noticed a small flicker of warmth cross her face.

Mai smiled, knowing exactly what to say. "The fire can be many things. It might be physical contact, a hand pulling you up from the snow. Or sometimes it is sleeping, and curling up with a cup of tea and a blanket. But usually... usually, the fire is an emotion. Trust, happiness, or... love," she explained, eyes going distant as she finished her sentence. The truth is, the fire had always been love for her. Love for one specific person, to be exact. His cool demeanor and dark attire contrasted with her imagery of a burning fire, but he was just that, indeed. His mind was constantly in motion, the grinding gears of his overactive brain creating sparks that fly and sometimes even flares; his body, despite closing himself off, has hot tea running through his veins. And whenever Mai was frozen in the snow, he was always ready to throw her in the fire. And one would think that this would burn her, scar her figure and mind, but the fire was always filled with blue eyes and hidden smiles. It was just the right temperature to make her blush.

Mai was lost in her own world, forgetting her previous conversation with her father figure. Takigawa smiled knowingly at her, being all too aware of the subject of her daydreaming. And as the man in question demanded another dosage of Earl Grey, the monk nudged the young brunette into action. A few minutes later, when Mai grumbled her way out of his office, he laughed. Despite how much the cold man teased and mocked his adoptive daughter, Takigawa knew that the heat of her words and the lava running in her blood was slowly kindling a fire. He had no doubts that soon, the ice covering Naru's heart would thaw completely. And then there would be a flood.


	7. Spaghetti

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm so, so sorry.

Mai sighed, her aching body groaning in pain. She once more attempted to swing her legs off the side of her unkempt bed, but the sudden movement of her limbs, coupled with the pain in her throat and her stomach and basically everywhere, instead forced her to turn over onto her side, and promptly empty her already barren stomach into the trash can placed next to her. As she grabbed the towel on her nightstand to wipe her mouth, her cell phone began to vibrate on the table. Sighing once more, she slowly reached for it, grabbed the phone and flipped it open with a quick snap. "Yes...?" Her rasping voice echoed in the silent room, slightly startling her. She hadn't heard her voice since that morning, when she had called in to work to inform Naru of her current condition, and it had clearly worsened in quality from misuse, along with her illness.

"Mai," a cold voice growled through the speaker, a steely edge of irritation coating the sound. "I don't care how sick you are. Get to the office right now." A loud, but indiscernible shout could be heard on the other side, followed by hysterical laughter. The only fact Mai knew was that the displeased voice coming from the phone was that of her boss, and the background noise most likely belonged to Yasuhara.

She sighed, closing her eyes. "Naru... I can't even... get out of bed. How," she cut herself off with a fit of coughing, racking her chest and rattling her lungs. Shaking, she took a deep breath, and began again. "How do you expect me to... to get to the office?"

The man was silent for a few was just about to tell him to go away and let her rest, when he spoke up again, the words pouring from his mouth surprising the both of them. "Then I'll go over to your apartment and pick you up. I cannot deal with this... I need you here." Mai gasped- or attempted to, before the action once again made her hack and wheeze, sending tremors through her body. Naru was quick to fix his slip, however, correcting his earlier statement. "I need you to make tea, that is."

Groaning, she uttered her consent. There was no way he was going to give up- he never does. Wearily, she inched herself off of the bed, cautious and slow, careful not to disturb her twisting stomach. When her feet hit the carpeted floor, Mai gave a small sigh of relief; thankful that she didn't puke again. Her limbs heavy, as if wrought from iron bars, she moved towards her dresser. She proceeded just like this, until she was finally ready, after puking two more times in the bathroom. Mai glanced at the clock above the door, noting that it had been almost an hour since Naru had called. He should have been here by now, she realized, wondering why he was late.

Almost as if he knew her thoughts, a few short knocks on the wooden door signalled the young man's arrival. As Mai opened the door for him, he looked over her still slightly disheveled appearance with a withering gaze. Grabbing her arm gently, he guided her down the stairs of the apartment complex, and into the familiar white van. She stumbled quite a few times, the falling sensation nearly causing her stomach to heave again.

Sighing, Naru resigned himself to the task of getting her into the van, buckling her in. "It's a wonder you haven't died yet, Mai," said her cold boss. His voice was neutral, carefully devoid of any emotion, though if one looked closely at his face, they might notice a slight strain in his eyes, a whiteness in his knuckles. "When you had called this morning, you made it sound like a simple flu. But this is insane. I've called Matsuzaki-san to the office, she'll give you any medicine you may need. You are not to make any unnecessary sounds. No straining your voice. Is that understood?"

Nodding mutely, Mai agreed to his rules. Silence smothered the two for the rest of the short journey, other than the occasional coughing fit coming from the sick passenger. It took ten minutes to get to the office, getting Mai inside took another fifteen.

The sight that greeted the psychic when she stumbled through the door would have made her puke even if she wasn't sick. Her eyes flitted all over the room, taking in the shock. Her gaze shifted from the walls, the the table, to Naru, back to the walls, and finally, to the giggling mess rolling around on the floor.

"Y-Yasuhara, what on... earth happened?" Mai could now see why Naru was so desperate. Everywhere she could see, there was a printed out picture. Upon closer examination, these pictures seemed to have crudely drawn faces on them, accompanied by words such as 'troll' and 'tfw'. Her mouth dropped in horror, not wanting to believe her eyes. "Yasu... you've be- become... a meme!"

The bespectacled researcher's head shot up at her final word, an almost frightening grin plastered on his face.

He pushed himself off of the carpeted floor, sauntering towards the duo.

Naru's grip on her shoulders tightened, not wishing to endure this routine again. Cautiously, he whispered in her ear, "He's been like this all day. But these horrendous pictures on the wall are not even the worst part. The worst is... oh, no. Here it is."

Yasuhara stopped a few feet in front of the sick girl, a mischievous glint in his dark eyes. The next five seconds seemed to happen in slow motion from the perspective of Mai. His mouth opened, and his next words would be etched in her mind for the rest of her life. "When you mom come home and make hte spaghetti."

Mai screamed, Naru cried, Yasu laughed, doing a strange dance reminiscent of a small green alien from the magical land of tumblr. And the world was never the same.


	8. Skullduggery

Okaa-san! Okaa-san!"

A small child with dark blue eyes and chestnut hair ran up to his busy mother, waving a plastic sword in the air. "Lookie, mama, I'm a pirate! Argh!" Bursting into a fit of giggles, the little boy grabbed onto his mother's leg and fell to the ground, nearly causing her to topple with him.

"Ah! Yuji, be more careful, please! You don't want mama to burn herself with the teapot, do you?" As she spoke those words, her husband strolled leisurely into the room, eyes instantly assessing the situation and deeming it safe to come in without being dragged into one of their 'games'. Taking note of his wife's slightly dishevelled appearance, he quickly became concerned, and approached her.

"Mai, is everything alright? You look rather stressed. You aren't having any first person dreams again, are you?" Naru placed the back of his hand on her forehead, noting that her temperature seemed to be fine. "What's wrong?"

Mai shook her head, laughing. "Oh, nothing's wrong, per se," she remarked gently as she placed the tea set on the table in front of her. Picking up Yuji, she ruffled his hair affectionately. "It's just that this little rascal here has been attacking my treasure trove and making away with all of my gold! What will we ever do about the fearsome Yuji, terror of the seven seas?" Playing along with her son's game made his smile grow larger, and he squirmed in her grasp until she set him back down on the floor.

"Argh! I am Yuji, the fiercest pirate in Japan! I'm gonna sink your ship!" He raised his sword up in the air, bearing an adorably ferocious expression on his chubby face. "Give me all your booty, landlubbers!"

Gasping, Mai pretended to hide behind Naru for protection from the 'pirate'. "Oh no, Commander Naru, what are we going to do? His swordplay is unmatched," Naru rolled his eyes, "-along with his smartness," here he nodded, knowing that any child of his was going to have an unparallelled IQ, "-and not to mention, his dashing looks are known to be the best in all of Japan!" At this, Naru turned to face his wife with an offended look.

"And I say to that, have you taken a look at me, lately? I highly doubt that a three year old is better looking than I." His slight pout served to excite Mai even more, giggles now uncontrolled. He continued to stare at her disbelievingly until she was able to pull herself back together again. However, he wasn't expecting her to come right back up with another insult.

"I don't know, Naru. Is that a gray hair I see? And oh, you are looking kinda malnourished lately. I think we should fill you up with some food!" She squatted down, her arms outstretched for her son to run into her embrace, leaving his sword behind. "What do you say, Yuji? Do you think it's dinner time yet?" At his delighted squeals and clapping hands, she nodded and stood once more to turn to her husband. "That settles it. One great feast for my favorite little pirate and my handsome commander. And save the sea battle for after you eat, if you please!"

As they chatted over dinner, or rather, Yuji rambled on and Mai listened, the toddler said something that caught both parents' attention. "Okaa-san, Otou-san, did you know that sometimes I see people? And I don't mean people like Bou-san or Yasuhara-san but people from old times! And they talk to me! And Auntie Masako says she can see 'em too but nobody else can so am I special? I know! I'm special just like Auntie Masako, right, okaa-san? Right, otou-san?"

Mai and Naru looked at their son, then to each other. Laughing, Mai exclaimed, "I guess with both parents having psychic powers, it was bound to happen!"


	9. Abecedarian

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> One who is learning the alphabet.

"My goodness, you really are an idiot. Try again."

Mai Taniyama, age 16, trying- and failing- to learn English. And she had oh so foolishly sought out her all-knowing boss for the task. It always troubled the young brunette whenever they had a case with an English-speaking ghost, and she couldn't understand a word of what was going on. Not to mention, ever since the oh-so-great Oliver Davis had returned from England, she realized that he could talk about her in English and she would have no clue what he was saying! And so, here she was, with a sheet of foreign characters in front of her, and Naru sighing for the millionth time in the past hour.

"Listen, Naru, I'm trying! It's just really hard because I have bad memory. I find it difficult to remember both the correct pronunciation and the form of each character, while still remembering that what they sound like is only their name, and not always how they sound in a word! Like this one, here," she pointed angrily at a letter on the page that to her, resembled a bunch of weirdly interconnecting lines, while to Naru, it was just an 'H'. "This one, you say it like eich, but in words you just expel more breath than normal. It doesn't make any sense!" Mai huffed, looking towards Naru with her cheeks blown out almost comically and a slight pout on her lips.

Naru, as usual, was unsympathetic to her plight. "Yes, that is correct. Now if you could get angry about every other letter, maybe you'll somehow get the hang of those as well. Mai, it seems like you have a gift for not understanding something, and yet when you get frustrated, you get it quite clearly when you express your anger. I believe that you just tell yourself that you are having a hard time, when in reality you are just fine. What is your issue with this letter here?" Her darkly clad boss motioned to a character near the end of the page. A few moments passed, and when Mai didn't say anything else, he looked towards her. Noticing how she just stood with her jaw dropped, too stunned from his analysis of her behavior to say anything, he flicked her forehead in order to bring her back to reality.

"Oh. Right. Sorry. Let's see... this one is said doburo yuu... Naru? What does the doburo part mean?" She glanced up to him, eyes wide with confusion and desperation. She knew her accent got in the way of some of the sounds in the English language, but she hoped he could still understand what she was trying to say.

"It means double," he answered brusquely, wishing she would hurry up and get mad at the stupid letter so that his job would be done.

"Oh. So is it named that because it's supposed to look like two yuu's put together? But... it doesnt! Not at all! I actually think a better name for it would be a doburo vee, because that's what it looks more like. And doesn't even get me started on ekuso. You told me that it's not a very commonly used letter, but when it comes at the front of a word, it's pronounced like a zee! What's up with that? And zee, oh boy, that's even more confusing, especially since you said that in England, it's also called zed. And furthermore..." As Mai continued on her tirade, Naru just focused on her face. Despite her getting mad at him tons of times before during cases, he had never truly paid attention to how expressive she was with a her facial features. He had always been too preoccupied with his logic, methods, and paranormal studying to waste time with silly matters like his assistant's eyebrows, of all things.

But now that he was with her in a slightly more relaxed situation, he truly got to see Mai in a different light. He observed every quirk of her brow, how she stretched her facial muscles and shifted her jaw and ground her teeth, and somehow all of this ridiculous stuff made her face look so damn appealing. He inaudibly groaned, knowing that if she could read his thoughts, she would probably attempt to inflict some sort of bodily harm. Luckily, he tuned back into her rant just as she finished going on about how stupid it was that the lowercase 'b' and 'd' look so similar. Standing as she concluded her speech, he remarked, "Good job. Now give me the alphabet in order."

Mai's jaw dropped. She had just spent five minutes of her life pouring out her soul and her anger towards the English alphabet, and now Naru wanted her to just get over it like no big deal? She just said why it was too difficult for her! Sighing, she looked at the first character on the page, expecting to have the pronunciation completely escape her. But she was shocked- not only could she remember what it was called, but also what sounds it made when paired with other letters when paired with other letters. "Ay, bee, see, dee, ee, ef, ji, eich, ai, jay, kay, eru, em, en, o, pee..." As she successfully got through each consecutive letter, Mai's smile grew larger and larger until she was practically bouncing for joy while reciting the letters. And then, when she was done with the verbal portion, she was even able to remember what they looked like!

While Mai sang gleefully and repeated each letter over and over, apparently pleased with how she said them, Naru just rolled his eyes. But it also crossed his mind that while annoyance and anger made her undeniably attractive, he decided that this overwhelming joy was much more preferable- the corners of her lips nearly reaching her sparkling eyes, and her hair bouncing and flying as she spun around, and- damn it. Naru realized that teaching her the alphabet would only lead to needing to teach her words, and then sentences, and then- you know what? Maybe he should just get Father Brown to help. He didn't know if he could handle that much more of Mai's face- er, antics.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Um, we're just gonna pretend that they dont learn English at Japanese schools because I totally forgot about that back when I wrote this.


	10. Enantiodromia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The conversion of something into its opposite.

She hated him. Sure, that might just be her teenage hormones talking, but the guy was such a narcissistic prick and all higher-than-thou and just all in all an ass that she could hardly say otherwise. How dare he speak in that manner towards Kuroda-san? Not to mention that despicable smirk of his when he mentioned her intellectual "inferiority".

... Whatever that meant, anyways.

As she put on a calmer face and left the old school building that evening to meet up with Keiko and Michiru, hoping to laugh away her anger, she couldn't help but notice his derisive glances whenever she happened to stumble, or laugh just a little bit too loudly. Although he quickly looked away again once she had gathered the courage to return his glares. Hey, you couldn't really blame her for hesitating- despite how much of an asshole he was, he was still incredibly attractive and more-than-slightly intimidating.

After she and her two friends had gone sufficiently far enough from the building, Mai let out an obviously agitated sigh, prompting her friends to ask the question of concern which opened the floodgate of hatred. She stormed and raved and raged, indicating to her friends that she might be like this until the handsome- yet according to her, absolutely intolerable- ghost hunter was far, far away.

Keiko and Michiru simultaneously attempted to calm their seething friend down, patting her back, with the tallest of the trio hugging her in a motherly manner, but nothing seemed to have any effect upon the raging girl.

Mai did, however, come to the conclusion during this time that she was doomed.

XX

Mai begrudgingly came to realize that he wasn't all that bad, though she still felt justified in declaring that she disliked him. To be truthful, the only reason she stopped saying the word hate in the first place was because he was paying her, and it would make her appear ungrateful.

(That didn't mean she couldn't think it, however.)

(But if she did still think it, why would she take the job?)

(She's an orphan- what do you expect? She needs to to make money somehow.)

(But she didn't have to work for him, if it was truly so-)

Shut up shut up shut UP!

The spiritualists surrounding Mai stared at her in lieu of her sudden and seemingly unprovoked outburst, which had apparently escaped the safety of her brain and infiltrated the very real lobby. Coloring slightly, she shaked her head and signalled for them to carry on with their business, and to not mind her one little bit. She did, however, go over the points which had been presented by the part of her conscience so decidedly against her hating actually the narcissist. And thus was her discovery that, indeed, she didn't hate him at all. Rather, she was feeling indifferent towards him. Sure, he got on her nerves all the time, always had some sort of snarky quip used to put her down and raise himself up, but he also had those moments where even he had a heart, and even deigned to reveal it towards the other constantly present irregulars, as they had come to be known.

And these considerations informed the teenager that no, Naru wasn't that bad after all. In fact, he might even be rather charming, in his own conceited way.

XXX

Mai didn't know when it happened, or how it happened, but it did.

Takigawa suspected it was after the Kenji case, when Naru finally permitted a small party in his office in celebration of Christmas. Ayako thought it happened when they had been found together at the bottom of a manhole. John, being a romantic and optimist, had seen the first signs long before, when she had defended him against the miko and the monk. Yasuhara, despite entering the group much later than the rest, claimed to have foretold its occurrence in a dream he had 500 years ago. Masako chose to pretend it didn't exist- despite her refusal to acknowledge it not making any difference on the reality of the situation.

Whenever, however it happened, the fact is that it did. The fact, the most unfortunate, unpleasant, exciting fact, is that Mai had a crush on her arrogant boss. And what was even more unfortunate, unpleasant, and exciting is that while he didn't quite acknowledge that her feelings were there, he did seem to be paying special attention to her during the Urado case.

Or maybe that was just Takigawa, who was relaying the irregulars' speculations to the blushing and highly embarrassed girl, reading far too much into it.

XXXX

She had never felt more in love with him than at that moment.

It was a rather morbid realization, considering that he was in a hospital after using his PK, but it was the truth. Mai was the only one left in his room, staring at his sleeping figure (she couldn't help but giggle at the thought that if he were awake, he would most definitely comment on the awful color of the curtains), so terrifyingly alone with her thoughts and speculations, and with plenty of time to realize that she was so terribly in love. She had told him that she liked him a lot, that day so many months ago in the forest, Gene still both heavy in their minds, but the word love had not intruded her mind nor her words until that moment.

Buzzing for the nurse as soon as Naru opened his eyes, his long eyelashes fluttering slightly, Mai couldn't help but hope that maybe, just maybe, he might not think her too stupid for falling in love with him, for falling in love with the twin with the "worse" personality- though in truth, his narcissism had become to her not a matter of contempt or dislike, but rather a way for her to know that this was no dream, no adventure through the astral plane, but that he was her Naru, no matter how long she had to wait for his gratitude for the tea.


	11. Vernalagnia

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The romantic mood brought about by the coming of spring.

Mai stared vacantly out the window of her dorm room, the occasional bird calling to its kin, and the more-than-a-little-frequent _sakura_ petals swirling through the warm air. He room happened to overlook a park, and seeing the young couples walking together, laughing, and generally spiting her very existence, made her wistful for something _more_. Since Naru- er, Oliver Davis- had left Japan to go back to his home in England, Mai had graduated from high school, and was now working towards her double majors in Occupational Therapy and Parapsychology. And to be honest, for the entirety of the first semester and third quarter, she felt she couldn't have been happier. She had friends, she was doing well in her classes, life was fine and dandy for the young psychic.

But now that spring had arrived, Mai was beginning to realize how long she had been in denial. She knew it bugged her whenever her roommate's boyfriend would come by to take her on a date- Mai knew she probably wouldn't ever be able to find that sort of happiness for herself. Naru had only returned to Japan three times in the two years since his original departure- once to close up the SPR office, once for Yasuhara's graduation, and then again for Mai's the next year. Although he didn't stay long for hers- in all honesty, she wouldn't have known he'd come unless Bou-san hadn't dragged him over to the group.

But since then, she hadn't seen hide nor hair of her former boss. Often, she would catch herself zoning out and thinking about him, but she would always pinch her forearm to remind herself to focus on her studies. Yet still, the memory of his occasional smile lingered at the back of her mind. Without even realizing what she was doing, Mai rose from her position near the small window, and drifted towards the desk crammed between the bunk beds and the wall. Retrieving her laptop from her bag, she quickly pulled up a search engine.

 _Blink_.

Naru's face stared back at her on the screen, different photographs from over the years of his life. One with the people she presumed to be his parents. One on a stage, giving a lecture. One from a newspaper article- it was in English, and she couldn't understand a word of it. The comfort of his face only worked for thirty seconds before Mai realized how pathetic she was, to resort to image searching her old boss.

Why do that, when she could talk with the real deal?

Mai clicked one of the bookmarks on her web browser, bringing her to her e-mail inbox. She had Naru as a contact, but she had never actually e-mailed him before. She supposed she had been too absorbed in her melancholic misery to actually consider that she could do something about her pain.

After five minutes of typing, backspacing, sighing, and more backspacing, Mai still had only sentence typed. Nothing else she could think of could possibly explain the severity and yet the simplicity of her sorrow. Not knowing what else to do, she clicked 'send', and turned her head to look once more at the dancing petals in the air.

Across the world, a narcissist wearing an outfit ill-suited for the warmth and delight of spring glanced over to his laptop when the _ping_ of a new email emitted from the speakers. Tired and sullen, expecting it to be from the annoying new intern who had managed to get his e-mail and was constantly pestering him to go out with her, he lethargically walked to his laptop. But the sender's name shocked him, filled him with hope.

_Dear Naru,_

_I miss you._

When he realized that was all the message contained, his eyes softened at his former assistant's straightforwardness. She was always one to let her emotions be made known to anyone and everyone who would listen, whether they actually did or not. That was something about her that made the psychic regret not telling her that he was planning on returning to reopen the office, this time becoming an official branch of SPR. But he knew she had to focus on her studies- every email he received from Yasuhara that contained news about Mai made him unbelievably proud of the brunette who had somehow, managed to warm his icy heart, much like the vernal sun began to melt the snow on the ground.


	12. Noceur

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Somebody who stays up late.

"Hey, Mai! What are you doing? You've been staying up late recently... what's so interesting on your computer? Are you talking to somebody? Ooh, is it a boy? Who is it?" Mai's rambunctious roommate bounced around the shorter girl, trying to get a glance at her screen. "C'mon, lemme see!"

"Ah, careful, Emiko," the laughing psychic warned when her short haired friend got dangerously near her equipment. "Emi, you know how expensive that camera was!" Spinning around in her chair, Mai saw Emiko in her own seat, leaning forward with her hands pressing down on her knees. Mai knew that position well. It was one her roommate had become very fond of- because it meant she expected a story, and a good one at that.

When Emiko first discovered Mai's previous occupation as a ghost hunter, she demanded to hear about all of the cases they went on, and the psychic happily obliged. Sometimes, her blonde roommate would record these stories in her flowery notebook, and other times, she would make her clearly socially awkward boyfriend listen in as well. Mai enjoyed having an audience, especially one that wasn't skeptical of the truthfulness of her tales. But this was one story she didn't know if she could tell.

While she had told Emiko about all of her co-workers, and she had already met Yasuhara, Mai never told her about that final moment with Naru. She never told her about how strongly her heart ached after being rejected so cruelly, never revealed Naru's true identity to her roommate. But now, seeing Emiko's determined expression, she knew she would have to let go of her fears.

"Well, it goes something like this..." And so for hours, she recalled her entire time with Naru. She didn't repeat the details of each case, seeing as Emiko practically knew them all by heart at this point, but rather, each individual moment with her cold boss that served to strengthen her feelings for the man.

Telling her own story to her bubbly friend made her realize that Naru may not have been rejecting her feelings, but instead, rejecting himself for her.

When she finally stopped talking, there was a long pause while she recollected her thoughts. Finally, Emiko spoke, hesitantly, seeming to realize that the slightest disturbance could send the brunette into waterworks.

"And so you've been e-mailing him... but it's awkward? Mai... you should tell him again. It sounds to me like he wants to see you again too, but I think he's scared to. Surely you've realized by now that you never answered his question in the woods?" The blonde reached a hand out to Mai's shoulder.

"... You're right. I never... I just let him think he was right. I never bothered to correct him..." Suddenly, Mai giggled, breaking the tense mood in the small dorm. "I can't believe I just let him go on serving his egotistical fantasies! He's got a big enough ego already, I shouldn't have let him believe he was right!"

Smiling widely, she grabbed Emiko's hand, and pulled her surprised friend towards her, trapping her in a tight embrace. Pulling away, she whispered a small "Thank you," before pulling her laptop and heading down to the rose garden, her favorite place to be alone.

Staring in shock at the door that closed behind the brunette, Emiko scratched the back of her neck. "Well, I hope he comes back from England soon. The time difference is killing her sleeping schedule!" Laughing quietly to herself, she went to her desk and began to write in her journal.


	13. Dogs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is an AU where they never met, and Mai got involved in parapsychology on her own.

Oliver Davis meandered through the back alleys of Tokyo, taking extra caution to not look to either side, knowing there would be sights he would forever regret seeing. He nearly reached the main road, people walking to and fro, everywhere and yet nowhere- when there was a tug. And a whine. A tug at the hem of his pants and a whine coming from a small furry object on the ground. Oliver bent over, attempting to get a better look at the creature bothering him.

A dog. Well, more like a puppy, but still a canine.

Numbing panic coursed through him, reminding him of a time in his past, when dogs were larger than him and he was bleeding. With an involuntary kick in an effort to get the hellish creature away from him, the tiny animal skidded along the gravel and pebbles, hitting the brick wall of the alley with a quiet thud, followed by a yelp. Oliver back away slowly, ending up on the sidewalk of the main road, and despite his ever careful nature, backed straight into a woman.

A woman who was standing surprisingly still. A woman who happened to see the event that just transpired. A woman who exclaimed loudly enough to cause other hurrying pedestrians to turn their heads in her direction, "Did you just kick that dog?!"

A woman who, Oliver subconsciously noted as he turned around to tell her to mind her own business, was of average height, average _everything,_ really, and yet somehow, in the scientist's mind, exceptionally beautiful.

Alright, so it wasn't that subconscious. The thought appeared in Oliver's mind as a blaring alarm, complete with flashing lights, and seemed to make his filter severely malfunction. And so of course, the first words out of his mouth were, "I'm scared of dogs."

The chestnut haired woman's eyes widened slightly, not expecting such an honest answer from the man. Gently pushing him aside, she entered the alley to pick up the puppy, which was now viciously attempting to attack the man's legs. Petting the dog to calm it down, she held it in her arms and stated calmly, "Well then... I don't know why you're scared of a cutie like this, but you look rich, so you're coming with me, buddy."

Somewhat regaining his senses, Oliver took a hesitant step backwards, then assumed his normal position of intimidation- with his arms crossed, head tilted slightly to one side, and perfect posture. He knew the powerful effect this stance had on people- it made them more willing to be honest, more nervous, and less willing to make him angry. It was highly useful when accepting cases, and even more so on the busy streets of the city. "And just why should I do that, miss...?"

"Taniyama. My name is Taniyama Mai." Strangely, his tactic seemed to fail on the woman- in fact, it made her even more sure of herself. Mai countered with her own self titled 'power pose'. One hand on her hip (usually both, but one arm was occupied with the puppy), knees apart, and leaning forward slightly on the balls of her feet. "And as for my reasoning, you'll find out when we get there. You have your PasMo and money, right? Great. Let's go!"

Without even realizing what was going on, Oliver found himself being dragged from store to store, paying for a dog bed, a collar and leash set, and unnecessarily large quantities of dog food. All the while, Mai played with the puppy, cooing and tickling the content animal, and demanding insolently that the man pay for every purchase. Including the outrageously expensive vet bills.

Eventually fed up with this utter nonsense, Oliver turned sharply to the bubbly woman, scoffing, "You know, if you wanted to go on a date with me that badly, then you could have just asked. Besides, I know I'm rich and exceptionally attractive, but is it really necessary to force me to pay for every single item that thing needs? You don't even know my name!"

Mai paused, staring at the man incredulously. "You think... you think I'm _attracted_ to you?" With a sharp laugh, she turned away from him, commenting over her shoulder, "What you just said confirmed my suspicions that you are nothing more than a narcissistic asshole. And you're Oliver Davis, right? I knew that practically as soon as I saw you."

"Wait, but how did-"

"What, you didn't expect me to be into parapsychology? That's my _major._ Practically everyone knows who you are, and you're like, a legend in the field. But just because you're famous doesn't mean you get be so egotistical about it! Anyways, I don't think the name 'Oliver' fits you very well." Pausing, Mai put a finger to her pursed lips. "Well, I'll come up with something sooner or later. Come on, one more stop, and then you're free to be on your merry- er, gloomy way."

And so they set off once more, soon traveling through the residential district. Oliver found himself becoming more and more compliant- sure, he would make arrogant comments, but in the end, he found himself intrigued by the college student. Eventually, she became more willing to converse as well.

As they climbed the stairs of her apartment complex, the puppy comfortably sleeping in the crook of her elbow, Mai turned to the scientist with a thin, solemn smile. Oliver raised an eyebrow, feigning nonchalance, though he internally thought that her wide, open smiles were much prettier. However, he was caught off guard by her next words.

"I'm an orphan too, you know."

"How di-"

"Biographies," she explained, laughing. "I've read practically every one of you in existence. Along with all of your books. But yes, I'm an orphan- though I was never lucky enough to get adopted. I lived with my teacher for a few years, until I was old enough to get emancipated."

Deciding to hold an actual, meaningful conversation with the girl, Oliver inquired, "How do you pay your rent? And your tuition?"

"I'm able to earn enough for the rent by working a few minimum wage jobs- fast food stuff. And I have a scholarship, so that covers most of my tuition." Here, Mai sighed. "Though I wish I could work like you do."

A lingering silence ensued, following them into her apartment. As she beckoned him inside, he noted how plain her room was. It didn't suit Mai at all, Oliver thought- no decorations, nothing to even signify that somebody lived there. As he set down all of the purchases from earlier that day, he continued to observe her apartment, but soon his attentions transferred to the girl. She entered her small kitchen, promising him a cup of tea.

Suddenly, Mai shouted. Hurrying to the kitchen to see what was wrong, Oliver realized that her shout had morphed into laughter.

"Awww, what a cutie!" Giggling gleefully, she watched as the puppy rolled around on the tile of the kitchen, seeming to be in paradise. Oliver cringed, and walked over to the girl, careful to not get anywhere near the dog.

"You know, you're very weird. You've got a famous professor whom you admire in your apartment, and you're paying more attention to the puppy. I thought you might have some brains in there, but for once, I thought wrong." Glancing sideways at Mai, he noticed a devilish grin emerging on her face.

"That's it!" Striking a dramatic pose and pointing straight at him, she exclaimed, "Oliver Davis, you shall hereby and forever be known as _Naru_ _the Narcissist!"_ Collapsing in a fit of laughter, she accepted the wandering puppy into her open arms. "And this little guy will be named _Oliver._ He's far more deserving of such a pretty name."

Despite the fact that she had just named her dog after him, Oliver accepted the cup of tea that she offered soon after, and left, needing to get back to his office. As he was walking out of the building, he realized that she never inquired after his reasoning for being in Japan. She obviously already knew about his twin's death, meaning she also knew that after Gene's body had been found three years ago, there was really no reason for Oliver to have returned.

A smirk forming on his face, he pulled out his cell phone, hitting the first speed dial."Lin? I need you to get a new desk, and write up a contract for a new assistant. I'm hiring. No, you aren't being fired, Madoka would give me hell. Yes, I'm sure I want another assistant. What? _No!"_ Sighing into the speaker Oliver spoke with a commanding tone that let his guardian know that his decision was final.

"I already have somebody in mind."


	14. Shock

It wasn't supposed to end like this.

He was supposed to have woken up by now. He was supposed to be ordering her around. Not lying in a bed in the ICU, hooked up to a million machines. Not surrounded by dying flowers that had lived past their freshly picked prime.

Not comatose.

She hated that word. Every time somebody mentioned his still unawakened status, her head lowered, her brow furrowed, her shoulders sagged. The nurse who happened to speak the offending word would always feel the need to place their hand on her shoulder, and whisper false words of comfort.

But she knew they didn't understand. Nobody did. They never felt the awe of his immense power. They couldn't understand how that same power was destroying him from within.

And only she knew how he was destroying her as well.

And so she sat there, unmoving, unwilling. It was only through the furious insistence of the miko that she even ate. But while she was the only one who was always there, she was almost never alone in her solemn waiting. His guardian was usually present, his somber aura permeating throughout the bleak hospital. The short, soft spoken priest, and the smiling student came once a week. The miko, the monk, and the medium visited often as well- though the last felt unworthy after all she had done to him.

Halfway through the second week, the parents arrived. This shocked the thin girl- she had no clue of his true identity until that moment. She began to feel awkward, unnecessary; after all, how could she compare to the people who raised him? But despite her hesitations, the smiling woman grabbed her hand and insisted that she stayed with them. She wanted to hear about how her son had behaved without them. She wanted to know just what the girl thought of him- and how she had managed to capture his heart so thoroughly.

The girl was highly embarrassed, but she answered all of her questions anyways. And while she denied any talk of romance, the love she felt was painted so clearly in the way she leaned forward every time the monitor beeped differently, the way that despite her stomach complaining of emptiness, she never left the room. She spoke enough to fill weeks, but he was still in the bed, still unmoving, still com-

Everyone stood, eyes unwavering, unblinking, staring intently at the patient who had most definitely just moved. They watched as his eyelids fluttered, his heart monitor beeping steadily.

The girl was the first to move again, catching his hand in her grasp as he slowly lifted it. She cradled it to her chest as his eyes parted slightly, for the first time in three months.

The mother quickly called everybody else, informing them of the news, and watched tearfully as her son blinked the delirium out of his eyes. She smiled, noticing how he almost immediately focused on the girl in front of him. Content to be on the sidelines, she allowed them to have their moment.

The girl spoke shakily, trying not to burst into tears. She repeated his name over and over, gently, lovingly. Everything was going to be okay.

But I knew how this would play out.

He smiled weakly at her, the expression lasting only a moment.

The beeping slowed.

Slower.

Slow.

Gone.

And as she stood there, trying to push some life back into his limp hand, barely breathing and yet sobs racking her petite frame, as the older woman wailed and cried, and just as a crowd of doctors, nurses, and friends burst through the doors, my idiot brother rose from the bed to join me.

All he could do was stare. He stared at her, eyes filled with regret, pain, melancholy. I knew this was hard for him. Death was always hard for those who loved too deeply. And so he watched her, watched how she screamed and sobbed, all for lack of him. I knew what was going through his mind- and I knew how much he wished he could tell her.

But this world doesn't take kindly to those who overstay their visit. I slowly took his hand, reminded of the times we spent inseparable as children. We came into this world together, and so we would leave it the same way. We left behind the crying room, the crying people, the crying hearts.

And while he was now looking forward to the future, I knew he had left his own heart behind, in the form of a chestnut haired girl with fire in her blood.


	15. Acceptance

She was never one to give up. She had forged her career through tears, scathing words, and determination- and quite a bit of talent. Even when the faceless crowd bombarded her with accusations, with words of 'fake' and 'poser', she still did not cave in. She would never cave in.

She once heard a friend say that in a landslide, it is the pebble that does not get smashed. And so she made herself small, compact, but firm. Amidst the hundreds of others who let fame get to their head and came crashing down soon after, she stayed strong. Strong and small.

But when she forgot these wise words, when she reached out and tried to use her power, her influence, she found herself in over her head. But who could blame her? He was perfect. He was smart, handsome, powerful- and he was a better version of her. They both stayed calm, but he was calmer. They both were sarcastic, but he managed to still make friends.

And so she used him. She used him to improve herself, but she soon found that the harder she pulled on his arm, the more he wanted to return to the other girl.

That damn girl.

Bright. Smiling. Adaptable.

Strong. Loud. Big.

She wondered how the girl didn't crack under the pressure of their occupation. The girl should be more like a pebble- small, inconsequential. More like her.

But time passed, and the girl still did not fall apart in the landslide. In fact, with each new case, she shone all the brighter. Smiled even wider. Loved him all the more.

And Masako didn't know how to handle that.

A key, given to her in a sign of friendship. She wondered how the girl learned to do this- she had never received any formal training, but she was still able to astral project. She began to see why he stayed with her. For her power.

But time passed, and the girl still smiled, and it seemed that she was wrong. It was not the power that she held, her aptitude, that kept him anchored to her. It was the love. Love that was mutual- mutually unwanted at first, but mutually given nonetheless.

And so when he scorned the girl by the lake, denying both of their hearts, she realized that he was no better than her. He was cracking, breaking apart.

Mai, it seemed, was not one of the mere rocks caught in the disaster.

She was the landslide herself.

Masako shook her head, covering her own new smile with the sleeve of her kimono. She would have to let go of him if she didn't want to be caught by her, too.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cheers to anybody who caught my reference to my favorite book series ever.


	16. Tumble

"You're an idiot."

"Well, at least I'm an idiot with manners!"

"No, you don't even have that. You're just an idiot who is very loud, attracts unwanted paranormal attention, and breaks her right leg by getting locked in a closet and attempting to kick the door down."

"Well, how was I supposed to know that I was gonna slip and land wrong?"

"Oh, I don't know- I mean, obviously wet floor signs apparently serve no cautionary purpose at all an-"

"I get it. Shut up. Anyways, this is kinda gonna be maaaybe an itty bitty... problem. Possibly. I thin-"

"Stop stalling."

"Right. Sorry. So the thing is, uh, well, because of being in the hospital, I'm currently late with paying the rent to my landlord, and then combined with the hospital bill... um... how do I say this?"

"Don't try to use more words than you know. That can't be healthy."

"Why, you little-!"

"So what you're trying to say is that you're currently broke and need your paycheck early."

"Oh, come on! Don't give me that look!"

"I'm not giving you a look. I'm simply being my attractive self as usual."

"You're an asshole."

"And I thought you said you had manners."

"I do! You're just that infuriating. I can't believe you call yourself a respectable member of society."

"Getting back on the topic, I'll pay your hospital bill, even though your injury was not caused by any supernatural phenomena. However, there is a caveat."

"A what?"

"Sorry. I momentarily forgot that you have the intelligence of a goldfish. There's a catch."

"And what would that be, Mr. High-and-Mighty?"

"You are to stay with Lin and I while you are recovering. I honestly don't trust you to be alone with a broken leg."

"...I'm... what?! Hey! Get back here! I'm not done with you, jerk!"

"Oh, by the way- the door wasn't even locked. It was just stuck."

"WHAT?!"


	17. Lipstick

"Come on, Mai! I promised I would help you apply your makeup, taking valuable time out of my _own_ schedule- you can't back out now! Especially when you look so gorgeous that even Father Brown would feel a bit of temptation," Ayako tugged at the younger girl's arm, impatient and mischievous.

"Ugh, Ayako! I don't want to think about that! Leave Father Brown out of this! And anyways, there's no way I'm _that_ pretty, even with makeup. What if Naru just laughs at me? Oh my _god_ , I'd be totally mortified! I knew this was a bad idea, let me go back and wipe it all-"

"Absolutely not. Mai, you're a pretty girl. Naru knows that. Did you really think he actually drinks 20 cups of tea in 2 hours? You're delusional." With one final pull, the priestess managed to get Mai out the door and into her own very expensive Corvette. "We've gotta hurry- what would his parents think if we were late to a dinner that _we_ invited them to?"

Despite Ayako's previous assuring words, Mai still had her doubts. She wanted to look professional- after all, this would be her first time meeting the highly esteemed Martin and Luella Davis- but she would also be dining with _Naru_ in a semi-formal setting. She almost felt like she was meeting her boyfriend's parents for the first time- the only difference being, of course, that she and Naru weren't dating. Despite that, she was still extremely nervous. "Ayako, are you _sure_ I don't look too gaudy or anything?"

"I'm not even going to give you a proper response."

" _Ayakooooo_ , stop being so mean!"

"No. Now be quiet, I need to figure out where to go from here."

X

Mai smiled brightly- she had nothing to worry about. Luella Davis was an amiable woman, and talked enough for everybody at the table- five times over. While her husband wasn't nearly as chatty, he still seemed to exude an aura of comfort. Bou-san practically monopolized his attention for the majority of the dinner. Ayako, Madoka, and Luella seemed to be getting along spectacularly- Madoka, of course, already being best friends with Luella. Mai, as per the norm, flitted like the social butterfly she was from conversation to conversation, managing to forget her insecurities.

But once the food arrived and the conversations died down, she noticed that the black haired boy across the table was staring at her rather peculiarly. It was expected that he rarely talked, and even the staring could normally be attributed to fascination with a lesser being. But something about his gaze suddenly made her feel even more self-conscious than she had earlier in the day. His eyes were half-lidded, long eyelashes fluttering every now and then. Brows furrowed ever-so-slightly, gaze darting from to and fro across her face, he stared.

It didn't take long for Mai to realize that his gaze kept returning to one feature- perhaps the most embarrassing of them all.

Her lips.

Ayako had let Mai use one of her expensive lipsticks- she said that it wouldn't smudge or stain, and was ideal for situations where one would be eating. Mai was shocked at how _mature_ it had made her look; the dark wine red adding an aura of- dare she say it- _sexiness_ to her otherwise youthful face.

But the dinner was soon over, and Mai hurried back out to Ayako's car, trying to avoid lingering in Naru's line of sight any longer than necessary. However, her valiant efforts proved fruitless: almost as soon as she walked out of the door of the restaurant, Naru grabbed her arm and turned her body so they were face to face.

"Wh- ah... huh?" Mai's face blushed brilliantly when she became aware of the sudden proximity of their noses and eyes and _lips_. She noticed how Naru seemed to be slightly out of breath, though he had no reason to be exerted. "Naru?" She asked, after several moments of tension-filled silence. "Are you oka- ah!"

Mai was suddenly and _wonderfully_ cut off by warm lips descending over her own. Her eyes slipped shut, and Naru's own arms shifted so she was wrapped in his embrace. She had never felt safer, she had never felt happier, and by god, she had never felt this damn entranced with such a simple act of _kissing_. As they both relaxed into the action, their lips pressed against the other's, adding just the right amount of pressure here and pulling away just slightly there, allowing Mai room to let out a small whine, demanding more. Nothing seemed more perfect than the two of them right then.

But slowly, Naru pulled away for real, allowing his hands to slowly fall from the small of her back, and giving time for both him and his assistant to regain their breath. Once fully recovered from the passion of the moment, Naru smirked.

"I've never been better."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter I'm bringing over from ffn. This is not being recontinued.


End file.
